Michael Griffin 
Islamic State 
Rewriting History

This book takes the long-view by analysing Islamic State’s beginnings in Iraq to their involvement in the Arab Spring and through to the present day.



The world is watching IS’s advance through the Middle East. The US risks being drawn into another war in the region despite its experiences in Afghanistan and Iraq. IS are creating catastrophic waves across the region, but it is still unclear what lies behind its success.



Michael Griffin uncovers the nature of IS through investigating the myriad of regional players engaged in a seemingly endless power game: Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Turkey and Iraq, which have all contributed to the success of IS by supplying arms and funds.



He foregrounds the story of the uprising against President Assad of Syria, the role played by the Free Syrian Army, Islamist groups, Iran, Hezbollah and Russia, the chemical weapons attacks in 2013 and the House of Commons vote not to impose a no-fly zone over the country.

Inhoudsopgave

List of Acronyms/Abbreviations

Timeline

Preface

1. The Great Escape

2. Zarqawi’s War

3. The First Caliph

4. Clear, Hold and Build

5. The Successions

6. Springtime for Qatar

7. The Road to Damascus

8. Prince Bandar’s Last Adventure

9. Knights of the Silencers

10. Treasure of Babisqa

11. Chain of Custody

12. Game of Thrones

13. Paradise Square

14. Birth of a Nation

15. Twitter Caliphate

16. Call of Duty

17. Inside the Whale

18. Euphrates Volcano

Postscript: Saddam’s Ghost

Notes

Index

Over de auteur

Michael Griffin is a writer, editor, political analyst and specialist on the Taliban and Al Qa’ida. He regularly comments on the war in Afghanistan for BBC World, Sky and Al Jazeera. As editor he has worked for Transparency International, International Alert, Small Arms Survey and ODI. He is the author of Reaping the Whirlwind (Pluto, 2003) and Islamic State (Pluto, 2015).